You Need to Hear Delta Rae - Writing Challenge, Day 4

I used to do music posts a lot - I dedicated one post a week to music.  Not sure if I'll go back to that, but definitely expect there to be some on a fairly regular basis.  I wouldn't do my first new music referral without it being about this band.  They don't get anywhere close to the recognition that they should.  Don't get me wrong; their fan base is strong.  But the only person I've talked to about them around here who knew about them was the person who showed me their music in the first place.

So, I want to just take a minute to introduce you guys to them.

Have you heard of Delta Rae?

Because if you haven't...you're missing out.

Their music is so different than anything on most mainstream radio today, and their style varies so much.  They call their genre southern gothic.  It's almost like having multiple bands in one because they're so versatile... Just take a listen below.  You'll find plenty of examples!





All four singers participate and do the lead or share the lead in different songs. They each have a different style, but they're all good.  I have yet to hear a song that I really don't like.  A couple have had to grow on me, but even those are ones that I love now.





You can find them on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, etc. if you're looking for downloadable music.  I bought "Bottom of the River" on iTunes because that was the first song I heard and loved how different and amazing it sounded.  I'm holding out to get the other albums on CD - and yes, I know.  I feel old.  But for some albums, I'd just rather have the tangible disc in my hands and have the booklet that comes with it.





Each of the videos I'm including in this post has a different lead singer.  And these are just my favorites.  Definitely go search around their Youtube channel and other people's videos of them live and find the rest.  You won't be disappointed.




If you've stayed with me this long, I'll leave you with this last video....

It's just amazing.  I can't really use that word enough to describe how I feel about this band.  I can listen to "No Peace In Quiet" on repeat and not get tired of it.  It's probably one of my top 5 favorite songs right now.





Oh, and one more thing.  If you listen to Pandora, I highly recommend starting a station with Delta Rae as the influence.  I started one while I was at work one day, and everything they played along with Delta Rae's music was very good.  It all fit right in and was genuinely good music.  I play it on a regular basis now.

There are soo many more videos I could link in here, but this post would never end, so I'll just give you a short list and you can do the rest of your research on your own.  Hopefully you'll enjoy falling down the Delta Rae rabbit hole like I did!

Definitely watch/listen to:
"My Whole Life Long"
"Run"
"Cold Day In Heaven"
"I Will Never Die"
"Fire [Live]"
"Chasing Twisters"
"Bottom of the River" (Live in Nashville)  They're amazing and just as good if not better live.  Plus, this song is just so cool and creepy!
"Bottom of the River" at Bonnaroo   I realize this is the 3rd time this song has appeared in this post, but this performance of it is broken down and performed completely different from the rest, and it's just too good not to warrant its own mention.
"If I Loved You" at Bonnaroo   Same for this song - it's mentioned twice, but this stripped down version is amazing.
"A Long And Happy Life"
"I Moved South"

You've now got a list of all of my absolute favorites.  I hope you've found a new band to enjoy!

Let me know what you think!

P.S. - I'm leaving a few links to Amazon to their albums here.  If you click over from my blog link  to purchase any of them through Amazon, I'll get paid a small commission.

       

See their website with tour dates here.
Follow them on Facebook.
Follow them on Twitter.
Follow them on Instagram.

New Music Tuesday - Fall Out Boy

Who out there is a Fall Out Boy fan?

I have been since their second album.  Basically when "Sugar, We're Goin Down" came out.  They've changed a lot since then, but I really like their new sound just as much as their old one.  It's different but still uniquely them, and I love it.

"Sugar, We're Goin Down"

So imagine my excitement when their new album came out.  I haven't bought the album yet because I'm trying to follow a stricter budget and stick to buying things that I and the animals actually need now.....but I can listen to it on Spotify all I want. :)

When "Centuries" came out, I was really excited.  Loved the song.  And now the rest of the album has joined it, so you can guess what will be playing on my computer/phone for a while!

"Centuries"

They already have quite a few singles out from this album, including "Centuries", "American Beauty/American Psycho", and "Immortals" (which was on Big Hero 6 - I still haven't seen it yet :( ), "Uma Thurman", and "The Kids Aren't Alright".

"American Beauty/American Psycho"

"Immortals"

If you go to FOB's YouTube channel, they've actually uploaded the entire album track-by-track, so if you don't use Spotify, you can also listen to the album there for free.  If you haven't checked out the The Young Blood Chronicles from their previous album Save Rock And Roll, you should check that out too.  They have each individual video, or you can watch the uncut version here.

I'll leave you with that for today.  Hope you enjoyed it, and happy listening!

What do you think of New Music Tuesday?

I may start doing this weekly, too.  If you have any new music you're excited about, tell me about it in the comments.  I might feature yours. :)

Spotify Playlists

Do you use Spotify?

I do.  Allllllll the time.  I didn't when I lived with my grandpa and didn't have internet just because...well...without internet it's kind of impossible.

But now that I have it? All the time.

A while back on The College Prepster, I read about the Spotify Mood Playlists.  I've known about them for a long time now, but when I first played around with it (way back when they first started the mood playlists? Not really sure..), I couldn't find one that I liked.  I'm really not sure why.

I revisited the mood playlists though, and so far, I love them.  My favorite for studying is the "Intense Studying" playlist under the Focus section.  There's a lot of YoYo Ma (a musician I had heard of but didn't know much about until I watched If I Stay, which by the way is one of my all time favorite movies.  I seriously watched it 3 times in the first 2 days that I owned it.  But anyway, yeah.  YoYo Ma.  One of my favorite classical musicians now.), a lot of the soundtrack to Pride & Prejudice (the newer one - another favorite, movie and soundtrack both), and many many other really great classical/piano/instrumental soundtrack pieces.  It's really great.  Beautiful music but no lyrics to distract me and make me sing along to.

Then yesterday, I deep cleaned my entire apartment while everyone else was out, and I listened to a lot of different stuff (it took half a day at least), but one of the playlists I had it listened to for the a while was the "Indie Workout" playlist under the Workout category.  A lot of the songs on that one reminded me of the style of music some of the local bands in my area play.  It was fun, and one that I've revisited a few times today.

Also while cleaning, I pulled up the "Hanging Out and Relaxing" playlist under the Chill category.  Loved it as well.  I played it most of the time I was cleaning.

I also found one today while I was working on organizing some paperwork/going through stuff I brought to my apartment from home.  It's the "Totally Stress Free" playlist (also under the Chill category).  It's pretty good too. :)

Check these lists out and let me know what you think!  Yay or nay?

Matchbox 20

"Parade"

When the slow parade went past
When it felt so good you knew it couldn't last
And all too soon the end was gonna come without a warning
And you'd have to just go home

And the way it all went by
And somebody said "come on its getting late"
And you thought the world might end if you just looked the other way
And now you wish that you had stayed

And there's so much more that you could see if you just stick around
And all the street light secrets whispering for you to come back out

Oh no
There's so much more that you need to work out
Oh no
You don't want that parade to leave you now

And the days are all the same
And the town so big and no one knows your name
And the people fade away
And all stars are just a flicker
And you're left there all alone

When there's so much more that you could see if you just stick around
And all the street light secrets whispering for you to come back out

Oh no
There's so much more that you need to work out
Oh no
You don't want that parade to leave you now

When the music's over
But the song stays in your head

Oh no
There's so much more that you need to work out
Oh no
You don't want that parade to leave you now

Yeah
There's so much more that you need to work out
Yeah
You don't want that parade to leave you now

-Lyrics copied from azlyrics.com.

Lea Michele - Cannonball

I'm just going to leave this here...

I think she's an amazing role model for women of all ages.  She's such an amazing singer and seems to be a genuinely amazing person too.  She's been through so much this year, and look at how she's dealt with it: definitely with more strength that I would have been able to muster in her situation.  I admire her a lot.

--------------------------------------

"Cannonball" Lyrics:

Break down

Break down

Break down

I was scared to death I was losing my mind

Break down

I couldn't close my eyes, I was pacing all night

I think I found the light at the end of the tunnel

I couldn't find the truth, I was going under

But I won't hide inside

I gotta get out, gotta get out

Gotta get out, gotta get out

Lonely inside and light the fuse

Light it now, light it now, light it now

And now I will start living today

Today, today I close that door

I got this new beginning and I will fly

I'll fly like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

I'll fly, I'll fly, I'll fly like a cannonball

Freedom

I let go of fear and the peace came quickly

Freedom

I was in the dark and then it hit me

I chose suffering and pain in the falling rain

I know I gotta get out into the world again

But I won't hide inside

I gotta get out, gotta get out

Gotta get out, gotta get out

Lonely inside and light the fuse

Light now, light it now, light it now

And now I will start living today

Today, today I close that door

I got this new beginning and I will fly

I'll fly like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

I'll fly, I'll fly, I'll fly like a cannonball

Break down

I was scared to death I was losing my mind

Break down

I gotta get out into the world again

And now I will start living today

Today, today I close that door

I got his new beginning and I will fly

I'll fly like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

I'll fly, I'll fly, I'll fly like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

Like a cannonball

I'll fly, I'll fly, I'll fly like a cannonball

Music Monday - God Gave Me You

Blake Shelton - God Gave Me You

Special meaning to this song right now.

More later. :)

MM - Close - Rascal Flatts

Close - Rascal Flatts

Music Monday - Once in a Lifetime, Girl

Once in a Lifetime, Girl - Steve Perry

I've loved this song since I discovered it - along with a lot of Steve Perry's other solo work - in middle school.  

(Warning: You might see a lot of other "classic rock" type stuff posted for Music Monday in the near future.  Thanks to Spotify, over the weekend I re-discovered a ton of the old rock music that I grew up listening to thanks to my parents.  I compiled it all into one giant playlist.  I have plenty to choose from. Haha.)

Personally, even though I like a lot of today's music, the stuff I grew up listening to from about sixth grade on is the stuff that I love the most.  That was the period of time that my mom and dad started actively introducing me to the stuff that they had listened to in middle and high school.  Of course, by that point, I already had a healthy knowledge of much of Def Leppard's music, since that was one band both of my parents liked and had played regularly when I grew up.  They're still my favorite band to date.  If I can't decide what music I want to listen to, I put anything of theirs on, and I'm happy.  I never get tired of them.  There's too much of a library of DL stuff to choose from to get tired of them. 

For a while, Journey was up there in the "favorite bands" list, and that's how I came to find Steve Perry's stuff.  One day I was raiding my mom's CDs looking for new stuff to add to my iTunes library, and I came across Steve Perry's Greatest Hits.  Whaaaat?  I had no idea he'd ever gone solo!  After which I wanted to smack myself in the head and go, "Duhhh Jordan, Journey ended up with a new lead singer at some point, what did you think happened to him??"

So I took the CD up to my room and listened to it.  Fell in love with pretty much the whole thing.  "Once in a Lifetime, Girl" was my favorite song off of it for a very long time.  When I listened to it again over the weekend, I knew I wanted to put it on the blog.

So, there you go.  A somewhat lengthy MM post, but c'est la vie.  You got a great song and story.  

You're welcome.

Music Monday - Hard to Love

"Hard to Love" by Lee Brice

Words can't describe how much I love this song. ♥

Music Monday

My Best Friend Hates You - Cassadee Pope

Music Monday

Over You - Daughtry

Music Monday

Black Balloon - The Goo Goo Dolls

She has to win!

Totally just bought this on iTunes.  I loved her band (Hey Monday, look them up) before they split up, and I love her voice.  She has to win!!!! :D

Music Monday

Crash - You Me At Six

Music Monday

"I Never Told You" by Colbie Caillat

I feel like the meaning behind this song is kind of obvious.  It's about telling the people you love how you feel about them instead of allowing a situation to come between you and destroy that relationship.

Music Monday...and a Bit Else

This week's song: Science and Faith by The Script.

I think we all have those people in our lives that have vastly different beliefs than us.  Whether it's science vs. faith, science vs. love, or something else completely... We all have that one person that we can debate with endlessly about an issue and always hit a brick wall at warp speed...every time.

This has always been one of my favorite songs by The Script, but I hadn't listened to it for a while...until last week when I had my iPod on shuffle and it rolled around onto my now playing screen.  It took me about 2 seconds to recognize that it describes pretty accurately quite a few conversations that I've had with someone in the past few months.  

Since then, instead of feeling dejected or angry about it, this song has sort of helped me realize how much more life has to offer me that that person does not.  Different views don't make a person bad...but they can limit them, even when they don't realize it.  I'm glad that I'm open to what my faith - faith in God, faith in life, faith in love - has to offer me, in addition to my own logic.  I feel freer for it, and I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't have that.

Music Monday - Tough

This song makes me smile. Kellie seems like such a badass in this, and I love it. lol

The lyrics "found out real fast, life is a game, you're out real quick if you don't know how to play" stand out to me a lot.

I also love how she comes across as a strong, confident, "tough" woman.  I feel like it gives the rest of us a little something to live up to. :)

Music Monday

Christina Grimmie singing "Titanium" by David Guetta and Sia.

Music Monday

I've been addicted for the past couple of days to two of Taylor Swift's songs off of her upcoming album.

Here they are: "Red" and "I Knew You Were Trouble".

Music Monday - Give Your Heart A Break

This isn't one I've listened to a whole lot recently...but back at the beginning of the summer and the last few weeks or so of school, I played it constantly.  I love it.

And if you have the time and really want to be amazed, this is such a good performance as well.  She's absolutely amazing live.